Pope welcomes Burch as new U.S. ambassador to the Holy See

Pope Leo XIV welcomed Brian Burch as the new U.S. ambassador to the Holy See Sept. 13, accepting his letters of credential and a chocolate cake topped with a metallic red sign saying, "Happy Birthday Pope Leo XIV."

Homemade cards for the pope's 70th birthday Sept. 14 sat alongside the cake, apparently made by some of Ambassador Burch's nine children, who also met the pope.

Burch's audience with the pope had its very formal moments, too, as the 50-year-old ambassador, wearing a black tailcoat, presented Pope Leo with a letter from President Donald Trump introducing Burch as the 13th U.S. ambassador to the Holy See.

Pope Leo and Burch then met privately in the library of the Apostolic Palace.

"This ceremony marks an important milestone in the continuing diplomatic relationship between the United States and the Holy See," the U.S. embassy press office said in a brief statement.

Burch also introduced Pope Leo to his wife, Sara, and their nine children, daughter-in-law and granddaughter.

In December, even before taking office, Trump announced on Truth Social that he was going to nominate Burch as ambassador to the Vatican.

"Brian is a devout Catholic, a father of nine, and President of CatholicVote. He has received numerous awards, and demonstrated exceptional leadership, helping build one of the largest Catholic advocacy groups in the Country," Trump wrote. Burch "represented me well during the last Election, having garnered more Catholic votes than any Presidential Candidate in History!"

Burch served as president of CatholicVote, a right-leaning political advocacy organization, from 2008 until his nomination as ambassador.

Born July 7, 1975, in Phoenix, he earned a bachelor's degree in political philosophy from the University of Dallas.

He was confirmed as ambassador by the U.S. Senate Aug. 2 in a vote of 49-44 along party lines.

The Vatican and the U.S. government announced the establishment of full diplomatic relations Jan. 10, 1984.